Spring practice arrives for new Elon football staff

Published: Sunday, March 30, 2014 at 12:21 AM.

ELON — The start of spring practices arrives with a pair of clearly stated goals for the Elon football team and first-year coach Rich Skrosky.

■ Install new systems on offense, defense and special teams.

■ Evaluate personnel across the board at all positions.

“Those are our two biggest objectives,” Skrosky said, “to make sure when we get out of the spring everybody in the program feels like we have our foundation set and we can build on that.

“So I think the focus overall is to take care of ourselves through the spring. The opponents will be here soon enough.”

Monday marks the first of 15 practice sessions that are open to the public and will conclude with a spring game on April 26, a Saturday night.

Skrosky, the BallState offensive coordinator during the last three seasons and former Elon assistant coach from 2006-10, said he was pleased with the performance of the Phoenix players in winter weight training and conditioning workouts.

“Now it’s on to the next stage,” he said. “We haven’t seen them in a football capacity yet. It’s going to be fun. I’m anxious to get going.”

Skrosky said community service that began in recent weeks — an initiative of projects designed to create pride and accountability within the program — already has proven rewarding for Elon’s players.

Some visited Blakey Hall, a retirement home in Elon, for dessert and dancing while others helped Habitat for Humanity begin construction on a house on Rauhut Street in Burlington.

“When I broached the subject with them, I think they were like, ‘What is this guy talking about? Community service?’ ” Skrosky said. “But I think they understood when they finished. You saw the looks on their faces, and I feel good about that.”

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ELON — The start of spring practices arrives with a pair of clearly stated goals for the Elon football team and first-year coach Rich Skrosky.

■ Install new systems on offense, defense and special teams.

■ Evaluate personnel across the board at all positions.

“Those are our two biggest objectives,” Skrosky said, “to make sure when we get out of the spring everybody in the program feels like we have our foundation set and we can build on that.

“So I think the focus overall is to take care of ourselves through the spring. The opponents will be here soon enough.”

Monday marks the first of 15 practice sessions that are open to the public and will conclude with a spring game on April 26, a Saturday night.

Skrosky, the BallState offensive coordinator during the last three seasons and former Elon assistant coach from 2006-10, said he was pleased with the performance of the Phoenix players in winter weight training and conditioning workouts.

“Now it’s on to the next stage,” he said. “We haven’t seen them in a football capacity yet. It’s going to be fun. I’m anxious to get going.”

Skrosky said community service that began in recent weeks — an initiative of projects designed to create pride and accountability within the program — already has proven rewarding for Elon’s players.

Some visited Blakey Hall, a retirement home in Elon, for dessert and dancing while others helped Habitat for Humanity begin construction on a house on Rauhut Street in Burlington.

“When I broached the subject with them, I think they were like, ‘What is this guy talking about? Community service?’ ” Skrosky said. “But I think they understood when they finished. You saw the looks on their faces, and I feel good about that.”